


Locked In

by allmylovesatonce



Category: Red White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston
Genre: M/M, quarantine au, real 2020 au, sorry it had to be done
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-03-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:33:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23254018
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allmylovesatonce/pseuds/allmylovesatonce
Summary: After their night together in Paris, Henry and Alex get quarantined in their hotel, locked in for two full weeks.
Relationships: Alex Claremont-Diaz/Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor
Comments: 49
Kudos: 377





	Locked In

**Author's Note:**

> I've read this book 3 times and loved it more each time. It is so wonderful! I've read so many great fics that I wanted to join in on the fun! This is my first time writing for them!

Henry put the pad back on the bedside table, the name of the cheese shop left for Alex. He smirked to himself, throwing a glance back toward the door to the bathroom. The sound of the shower running carried from the room along with the sound of Alex singing some song. Henry almost could recognize it, but couldn’t name it. He was so tempted to just go join him, but he turned instead and walked toward the door. They’d see each other later. Henry needed to return to his hotel. 

Opening the door, he was greeted by the security outside the door. His PPOs were there along with Cash, Alex’s secret service agent. They looked at him with grim expressions. Suddenly, Henry was worried. “Are we ready to go?” 

“I’m afraid we can’t leave.” 

Henry’s eyebrows lifted. “I’m sorry.” 

“The hotel is locked down, Your Highness. No one in or out. There was a case confirmed here and everyone is under quarantine for the next two weeks.” 

His jaw honestly dropped open. “What?” He looked to Cash, wondering if he would contradict this. His mouth flattened into a line and he shook his head at Henry. “Well okay then.” He glanced back at the room they’d thoroughly trashed the night before. Walking back in, he closed the door behind him and paused in the entryway. When he’d come here with Alex the night before, he’d had little else on his mind but Alex’s body. It wasn’t until this morning that he’d even really realized they’d spent the night together when they’d never done that before. And yet, on the heels of a first night together, they were locked in for two full weeks? How was that going to work? 

Henry’s mind was moving too fast. Too many possibilities were presenting themselves to him too quickly. He was still standing by the door when Alex walked out of the bathroom in nothing but the towel around his waist. 

“Oh, hey, you’re still here!” 

Henry swallowed harshly, trying to look at his face and not his body. “Yes, apparently, I’ll be here for a while.” 

A smug grin crossed Alex’s face. “Couldn’t get enough, huh?” 

Henry rolled his eyes, his mouth tugging into a reluctant smile. “Not quite what I meant. We’re under quarantine.” 

“Wait, what?” 

“The hotel is locked down for two weeks.” 

To his pleasure, Alex looked as dumbfounded as he had when he was told. 

“Well, okay.” 

There was a silence between them, both of them clearly trying to figure out what to make of this. Henry hated how part of him wasn’t all that worried. The idea of two uninterrupted weeks with Alex initially seemed amazing, but what would it be like in reality? What if they murdered each other? 

Or worse, what if Alex got bored of him? 

He shook the idea from his mind and turned to see how Alex was reacting. 

“Look,” Henry offered, “if it makes it easier, I can go down and see if there’s an extra room somewhere in the hotel.” He figured it was safer to offer before Alex told him to. That would do too much damage to his poor heart. 

Alex’s head whipped over, staring at him in surprise. “Is that what you want? I figured we’d get through it together.” He took a step closer to Henry. “I mean, I would imagine that would be infinitely more interesting than being locked down alone.” 

Henry fought the smile trying to spread on his face. “I would agree.” 

Alex walked over, grabbing the front of Henry’s shirt. “Then what was with your offer?” 

The question was met with a shrug. “I was attempting to be courteous.” 

“Fuck that,” Alex replied. “We can survive this terrible situation together, right? I’m sure there must be  _ some _ way we could entertain ourselves?” His grin came back.

Henry ducked his head, stopping just before their lips touched. “Surely we could find a way.” His hands roamed, finding the towel and stripping it off. “Oh, no. Would you look at that?” 

Alex’s mouth crashed against his, hands finding the collar of his shirt. “You’re wearing too much.” 

Henry walked them back until Alex’s knees hit the bed. “I don’t think we need to worry about me.” Before Alex could reply, Henry’s mouth was occupied between his legs. 

* * *

So far, quarantine seemed alright to Alex. He laid next to Henry silently while he called his family to update them and then they made out again before Alex called his family. There were only two people who could know the true situation: Pez and Nora. 

The latter called about a half hour after Alex had hung up with June. He and Henry were still laying in the bed, neither having moved to put on clothes. When Alex saw it was Nora, he answered, putting it on speakerphone. 

“Hello.” 

“Alex! So you’re locked in in Paris, huh?” she asked, an almost gleeful tone to her voice. “And are you locked in alone?” 

Henry grinned at her question. Alex nodded to him, letting him answer for himself. “Hello, Nora.” 

A loud squeal came from the phone, making Alex shake his head. Nora started laughing, talking through it. “Oh I  _ love _ that y’all are quarantined together. That’s just too good.” 

“It’s certainly better than being alone,” Alex agreed. 

“I cannot believe that you are on a forced, two week long, all expenses paid, sex vacation.” 

Alex shook his head, a grin on his face, but Henry was the one to respond. “We’re in the middle of a global emergency.” 

“I still can’t believe they had this fundraiser,” Alex said. He looked to Henry. “Or that either of us were allowed to go.” 

“It seems like the situation changed pretty quickly. I mean, there still isn’t much going on here,” Nora told them, “your mom is just making sure we’re ready.” 

“Well that’s good,” Alex replied. 

“So what are y’all going to do for two whole weeks?” Nora asked. She laughed before continuing. “I mean, other than the obvious.” 

Henry shook his head, leaving Alex to reply. “I don’t know. I guess we’ll have to figure it out. Oddly enough, I wasn’t that concerned about a fancy hotel with a tv in it. So hopefully this one works.” 

Nora snickered. “Well I’m sure you’ll find  _ something _ to pass the time.” 

“I hate to say it, Nora, but I don’t believe subtlety is your strong suit.” 

“Wasn’t aiming for subtlety, Henry. You just take care of Alex, all right?” Henry laughed, mainly at the sight of Alex dropping his head into his hands. “Talk to you boys soon!” 

“Yes, bye, Nora!” Alex yelled, quickly hanging up the call. 

He crawled out of the bed, walking toward his suitcase. “You know, I think I get your relationship with Nora,” Henry said. Alex turned to look back at him. “She’s your Pez.” 

Alex burst out laughing. “I think you’re right. She certainly was all about helping me get you alone at the state dinner.” A broad grin spread on Henry’s face. “As I’m assuming Pez would have done in the reverse.” 

He nodded in reply. “Oh yes. He wanted to turn the plane around on New Years when I’d told him. That was the exact reason I waited until we were on the plane to do so. I knew he’d march me back in there.” 

Alex thought of what that would have been like. He watched Henry as his mind played through the possibilities. “It’s too bad you waited to tell him.” 

Henry’s eyes focused on him, blazing. “Oh? And what would have happened if I’d told him? If he’d made me go back?” 

A slow smile spread across Alex’s face as he meandered back over to the bed. Henry was sitting up on the edge, watching him raptly. His hands cupped Henry’s face before he ducked his head and kissed him hard. Moving closer, he straddled his waist, kissing him deeply and thoroughly. Quickly, he pulled back with a pop. “Probably something like that,” he said with a wink, walking back over to his suitcase. 

“Bastard,” Henry breathed. Alex bent over his suitcase, finding a change of clothes. He could hear the sound of Henry moving over to him. Looking back, he saw Henry staring down at his suitcase. “You knew you were only coming for a weekend, right?” 

Alex chuckled. “This is how I pack. I pull out options and let Nora and June pick. So typically they can’t agree on anything and I end up bringing it all...just in case.” 

Henry shook his head with a grin, bending down next to Alex. “I guess in this instance, it worked well.” An unsure look crossed his face. “You wouldn’t have any to spare for me, would you?” Alex’s eyebrows raised comically. “All my clothes are stuck at the hotel I didn’t end up staying at. My suit from yesterday is all I have.” 

A grin crossed his face as he stared back at Henry. Part of him wanted to demand that Henry be naked for the next two weeks. But another thought came to mind. The image of Henry in his pajama pants and t-shirt from the night they’d met in the guest kitchen at Kensington. He wanted a repeat of that sight, at a time when he could actually appreciate it. “Sure, I might have some clothes for you.” 

He pulled out a pair of sweats that he’d thrown in just in case. Handing it to Henry, he grabbed his favorite t-shirt. It gave him a thrill to imagine Henry donning it. Henry looked between him and the clothes in his hands before shrugging and putting them on. 

Once also clothed, Alex went to sit on the couch, grabbing the tv remote. A gasp echoed from him as he stared at the fuzzy screen. “What’s wrong?” Henry asked before turning to look. “Does it not work?” 

“What’s the point of paying this much for a nice hotel if the tv doesn’t work?” Alex cried. Henry sat down next to him, a less than sympathetic look on his face. 

“Didn’t you just tell Nora that you didn’t care if the tv worked when you booked it?” 

Alex glared at him. “To be fair, I didn’t actually book it. I think Zahra did. So it’s all Zahra’s fault.” Alex wandered over to find his phone, hoping to pull up something on Netflix. “Fuck!” 

“What now?” 

“My phone’s about to die. Henry, what are we going to do?” He threw himself down on the couch next to Henry who looked a bit bemused. 

He moved closer, leaning his head against Alex’s shoulder. “What would you be doing if you were at home?” Alex glanced down at him. Henry met his gaze. “Talking is something to do, is it not?” 

Alex chuckled in reply. He scooched down into the couch, leaning into Henry. “I guess it is. If I were at home, I guess I’d be doing something with the campaign.” His eyes cut down to look at Henry. “You?” 

Henry’s hand closed around Alex’s. “I dunno. Attending some event perhaps. Cutting ribbons or shaking hands.” 

“Shaking hands is not advised at this time,” Alex teased. 

Henry unlaced his fingers and moved further away on the couch. “Oh yes, we’re supposed to be keeping a safe distance, correct?” 

Alex shook his head at him, immediately following him down the couch. “If either one of us has it, we’re already screwed. No point in distancing now.” 

A grin crossed Henry’s face as he leaned back into him. “That would make for a very lonely two weeks.” 

Alex hummed his agreement, moving in to kiss him softly. It started slowly before they kissed for a time Alex didn’t care to count, hands getting tangled in clothes and hair as their tongues danced together. Alex was (shockingly) the first one to pull back, his forehead resting against Henry’s. “No matter what I’d be doing at home, I’d rather be doing this,” he breathed. 

A soft look crossed Henry’s face before he closed the distance between them again. They made out on the couch until a growling stomach separated them. 

* * *

It was on Day 3 of the quarantine that Alex upended everything in Henry’s carefully curated facade. 

“Wait! You have an English degree,” Alex said excitedly. 

Henry stared at him with a curious look. “And? Why feel the need to bring up the deep shame of my grandmother?” he asked with a dark chuckle. 

Alex sat up, watching him from the other end of the couch. His legs were draped across Henry’s lap. “You love reading. You talk about it all the time. Surely you have a book with you. Don’t you always have one when you travel?” 

He was almost taken aback by Alex’s memory of the things he’s said. Henry started to nod. “Well, yes, I did bring a book with me —” 

“Great! Why don’t you read it to me?” Alex asked with a smile, leaning back against the arm of the couch. 

Henry flicked his toes where they rested in his lap. “Don’t you remember? My things aren’t here.” 

Alex groaned loudly. “Ugh, that’s right.” Henry’s hand moved to rest against Alex’s ankle as a silence hung in the air. “You like to write, don’t you?” His eyes were on Henry as he turned to look at him. He simply nodded in reply, hoping the question he was expecting wouldn’t be posed. 

He sat up again, watching Henry as he did. “What if you read something that you wrote?” 

His stomach was tied in knots. The thought of reading Alex —  _ Alex  _ — something that he’d written had him tense and uneasy. Most of the things he wrote were incredibly personal. And the thing that made him the most uneasy was that he didn’t seem to hate the idea of sharing that part of him with Alex. 

“I suppose I could,” Henry offered, still a bit reluctant. He sighed and pulled out his phone. “I emailed a few stories to Pez. They could still be in my email.” 

“You don’t use the cloud?” Alex asked. Henry shrugged. “My god, are you afraid of technology?” 

Henry ignored him instead of replying. Scrolling through his phone, he looked for an email to Pez. He’d recently cleared out his email and was horrified to only find one story deep in the archives. One he could never read to Alex. He pretended to still be looking for it as he sent a text to Pez. 

**Do you have any of the stories I’ve sent you? I only have “Musings on a Lost Love.” Alex wants me to read him something. Send me something!**

He talked to Alex to kill time as he pretended to look for stories. Thankfully, Pez must have been on his phone. He replied almost instantly. 

**Wait, isn’t that about him?**

Henry rolled his eyes before replying. 

**Yes. Which is obviously why I can’t read it to him. Send me something else. I don’t have my laptop with me.**

**No, I don’t think I will.**

**Pez, you bloody bastard! Help me out.**

**I am. Read him the story.**

**I hate you. Send me something.**

**Read him the story and I’ll send you something else.**

“Everything okay?” Alex asked from the other end of the couch. Henry’s head whipped over in his direction. He nodded quickly, looking back to his phone. 

“Just trying to find something. I only have one story in my email but I’m sure you wouldn’t want to read it.” 

“Yes, I would! I want to read whatever you wrote.” 

Henry eyed Alex for a long moment, reading the sincerity on his face. A touched feeling filled him up. Suddenly, he felt more willing to read his story to Alex. With a great sigh, Henry sunk down further into the couch and clicked on the document. 

Alex nudged him with his foot. “Will you read it to me?” 

“What, they don’t teach children how to read in America?” Henry teased. 

Alex rolled his eyes, nudging him again. “I just want to hear you read it. It’ll sound better in your accent.” 

Henry’s eyes lingered on him. “Oh?” Alex had nothing to say in reply. He simply shrugged. Henry shook his head and looked back at his phone. He sighed again before he started to read it. 

* * *

Alex wasn’t sure how he actually talked Henry into reading something he’d written. He’d been honest, he really did want to hear it in Henry’s accent. He stood by his realization that he was only attracted to  _ Henry’s  _ British accent. They’d been hanging out on the couch when Alex thought that Henry should read something to him. But he’d never have guessed that Henry would actually agree. 

He settled further into the couch, letting Henry’s voice flow over him. His accent curled around the words, painting Alex a picture of heartbreak. He was caught up in the way Henry spoke as much as the words he shared. It almost felt more intimate than anything else they’d done that day. Henry had poured his heart and his thoughts into this story and yet, he shared it with Alex willingly. It felt like a big line was being crossed, pushing them further into new territory. Surprisingly, Alex was all right with that idea. Maybe it was being stuck with Henry for days on end, but he found the idea sat better than he would have expected. 

Alex felt at peace in that moment with Henry. Everything felt easy, felt right. 

He could tell Henry was reaching the end of his story and Alex didn’t want it to end. 

“And I know this: red hair and freckled skin shall haunt my days.” 

Suddenly, Alex felt less at ease. He shook his head, trying to ignore the thoughts popping in his mind. Henry set his phone down, but he didn’t look over at him. Alex sat up, pulling his feet from Henry’s lap and curling them beneath him. Henry glanced over at him. There was a hesitant and unsure look on his face. Alex couldn’t help but stare at him in awe. 

“Henry,” he started. “That was amazing.” 

“You think so?” 

“It was beautiful!” He shook his head with a smile. “I can’t believe that you wrote that. It was great!” 

He ducked his head, pointedly avoiding Alex’s gaze. “Thank you,” he said in a small voice. 

“Is that all you have in your email? I’d love to hear more.” 

Henry watched him for a moment. “You would?” Alex nodded insistently. A small smile spread on Henry’s face. “Well I’ll see if Pez has more in his email. I’d cleared mine out.” 

While Henry texted Pez, Alex worked up the courage to say the thought at the forefront of his mind. “So...was that somewhat autobiographical?” 

“Hmm?” 

“Your story. About this guy. That was supposed to be from your perspective, right?” Henry’s eyes were locked on his phone, but he’d stopped texting. Alex knew he was trying to decide how to answer. Clearly, Alex was right. “I was only asking because it just was a super strong narrative or whatever. You could just feel the emotion in it.” 

Henry looked back to Alex, now with a nervous expression on his face. “Well, thanks. I guess it might be a bit.” 

Alex didn’t really know how to reply. They sat there for a long silent moment. Maybe Henry didn’t really know what to say either. Alex should have kept his question to himself. Classic Alex, saying whatever comes to mind and ruining things. He didn’t need to know that Henry was quite clearly obsessed with someone else. 

Frantic and unable to figure out what to do, Alex stuck his nose in his shirt and let out a sigh. “I feel like I’m due for a shower. I’m going to go jump in there. You think of something we should do when I’m done.” Henry agreed easily. He must have wanted a bit of space as much as Alex thought he did. 

* * *

Henry waited until the water was running and Alex was in the shower before he called Pez. 

“Hello?” 

“You are such an arsehole. Do you know that?” 

Pez only laughed in reply. “What? He didn’t like your story?” 

“It was fine. But do you realize what could have happened if it wasn’t? We’re on day  _ three _ of quarantine. It’s not time to be experimenting with the dynamic between us.” 

His friend only sighed dramatically on the other end. “Or do you think it’s maybe the perfect time to do that? When are you ever going to have two uninterrupted weeks with Alex again? Probably never, hate to say it. This is your chance to put it all out there.” 

“No. No it’s not, Pez. It’s only physical to him. I can’t come in telling him that I’ve written stories about him and all the other mess of feelings I have for him. It would be a bloody disaster. We don’t have anywhere else to go if Alex gets freaked out by how deep I’ve gotten.” Henry ran a hand down his face, back to hating the situation they’re in. When they spent a day or a night taking each other apart and leaving in the shadow of night, he didn’t have to think too much on how different his feelings are from Alex’s. He got to have that little bit of him and prayed that it would be enough. 

“I’m just saying that times are crazy and maybe you should ask him where he stands.” 

“Just send me some other innocuous things that I’ve written and sent to you,” Henry demanded, ignoring Pez’s other advice. “Then if he asks me to read more, I already have it. I did as you asked, now help me out.” 

“Henry, why can’t you just talk to him about it?” 

Henry sighed dramatically, his voice growing louder than he anticipated as he replied. “I can hardly tell him that I’m in love with him. So I just avoided the question when Alex asked me if the story was based on my real life. And that’ll have to do until we get out of here.” 

He could envision Pez rolling his eyes on the other end. “Whatever. I’ll forward you those stories in case your lover wants more.” 

“Thank you,” Henry replied with a huff. 

He hung up with Pez and threw himself down on the bed dramatically. It was most certainly a mess he’d gotten himself into. When Alex asked him to read a story, he could have just said no. He’d never been very good at saying no to Alex, though. 

Henry was not sure how long he laid there, wallowing in his own misery, before Alex walked out of the bathroom. To his disappointment, he left fully dressed instead of just a towel. Alex almost had an odd look about him when their eyes first met. He quickly schooled his expression and grinned at Henry. 

Leaning up on his elbows, Henry watched Alex, allowing him to dictate what happened next. Even if it was Alex’s fault that Henry read his story, he still felt like things were altered because of it. And somehow, he felt the guilt over that. Silently, Alex just laid down sideways across the bed, the same way Henry was. They laid next to each other simply. Nothing was said between them, but Alex’s hand found its way into Henry’s. With a squeeze, Henry told him not to let go. 

* * *

Alex could be patient, but the wait for a time to call Nora was killing him. In the end, it took another full day and a half before Henry showered again while Alex was still awake. He’d invited Alex to join him and he’d politely declined. It was day five of quarantine and Alex was really losing his shit. They weren’t even halfway. The worst part was, it was his own fault. He’d been the one to make Henry read the story that caused all the problems. He knew he needed someone’s wiser opinions on it. Nora was the only one he could go to for many reasons. 

“Nora, I’m ruining it!” Alex said as soon as Nora answered. 

“Whoa, just right out of the gate with it. What’s going on?” 

Alex quickly explained the story situation to Nora and how much it had messed him up over the last day and a half. “I mean, imagine that you’re feeling this way and you have to spend every minute with him. There’s quite literally no escape.” 

“You’re so dramatic. But also, tell me how you’re feeling. Because before you left for Paris, you said it was no big deal. You were just friends who gave each other blowjobs sometimes. Are you saying there are feelings now?” 

Alex hated the description he’d used to Nora (and to Henry the first night they were together). It was just easier to describe it that way. How else could he describe someone that he was sort of friends with, that made him go crazy when they didn’t talk, that he was insanely attracted to, that he was willing to fly across the world just to be near and get to touch him, that he was drawn to beyond reason? There was no clear explanation as far as he could surmise. “Friends with blowjobs” wasn’t close to it, but it did the job. 

“I don’t know, Nora. I guess, maybe. But I can never admit it to him. I mean for crying out loud, he’s obsessed with this other dude. How will it make me look if I tell him I have feelings for him,” he takes a moment to gag, “and he’s just with me casually? For the sex or whatever.” 

“Alex, I really doubt that’s the case. He signed up to go to some boring fundraiser just to see you. Because you asked him to. I doubt he’d do that just for the sex. He’s a fucking prince. I feel like even with being in the closet, it wouldn’t be that hard for him to get a good lay.” 

“Okay, stop.” 

“What, does that spring something up in you? Are you, perchance,  _ jealous _ ?” Alex’s silence was what tipped Nora off to how right she is. “Oh my God, are you?” 

“Not of the idea that Henry could go to anyone else. But...this guy that he’s obsessed with, I guess, yeah, I’m a bit jealous. I mean, I fucking heard him on the phone with Pez talking about how he loves this guy. I’m here with Henry because I want to be here with him. Where does he want to be instead? I’m just some placeholder.” 

“I seriously doubt that, Alex. For all the reasons I listed above. Man, I wish June could also tell you how wrong you are.” 

“Do. Not.” 

“I’m obviously not going to tell her your secret. She’d be pissed to hear it from me anyway.” 

“What do I do, Nora?” 

She sighed lightly on the other end. “Alex, just enjoy the time you have with him. You’re surely discovering new sides of him, being trapped in the same room endlessly. Don’t make things weird. Just be with him and put the other guy out of your head. He probably has him out of his head, so you might as well too. Don’t let someone else mentally in your bed.” 

“That’s actually pretty good advice.” 

“I don’t like the ‘actually’ that you threw in there, but yes, it  _ is _ good advice.” Alex was silent for a moment, long enough for Nora to continue. “You know what else you could do? You could tell him how you feel.”

Alex scoffed loudly. 

“Don’t be an idiot,” Nora chided. “Alex, you’re probably not going to get to see much of him once you’re out of quarantine. I doubt either one of your powerful families will let you go galavanting around after you got stuck for two weeks in a foreign country. So just spend the time that you have with him  _ with him _ .” 

“Thanks, Nora,” Alex said in a small voice.

After Henry got out of the shower, Alex attempted to spend the rest of the day normally. They ate their lunch sitting close to each other on the couch. Henry stole food from Alex’s plate and he wondered if, maybe, they were fine. Alex shoved him by the shoulder and Henry only grinned in reply. He hated the spark in the pit of his stomach at the sight of it. 

Even when pretending to be normal, Alex’s thoughts were consumed by this other guy. He attempted to follow Nora’s advice and pretend that nothing was wrong, but his mind wasn’t so easy to sway. Henry would be telling some story and Alex would listen and laugh at the right parts and wonder why  _ he _ couldn’t be the one Henry wrote stories about. 

Later that night, they settled on the couch— as they usually did in the evenings— to watch something on Alex’s phone. He didn’t know how his became the phone they watched on, but he didn’t care. He tossed it to Henry while he got their drinks, allowing him to pick what they watched. 

“You’ve got a text from Nora,” Henry told him as he scrolled through their options. 

He wondered if Henry had seen any of the message from Nora. With her, it could be anything. Sitting down next to him, he took his phone from Henry, suddenly nervous about what she could have said. 

It was one text: 

**You need to tell him** . 

Alex stared down at it, wondering how many different ways it could be interpreted. He just hoped Henry didn’t read it. Or at the very least, hoped he didn’t read  _ into  _ it. Pulling Netflix back up, he handed the phone back to Henry and let him choose. 

Henry, true to form, selected the next episode of  _ Bake-Off _ and they were taken off to Biscuit Land. Alex wished he’d pick something that required more focus. He wanted to escape to some intricate story and not be sitting on the couch, trying not to stare at Henry, wondering why he didn’t want Alex the way Alex wanted him. 

Henry glanced over at one point, one eyebrow raised in question to Alex. He simply shook his head and turned back to the screen, not answering Henry’s silent question. But as soon as Henry was looking back at the screen, Alex was staring at him again. It was so easy — too easy — to note all the beautiful things about him. It was too easy to take stock of all the reasons he couldn’t stop staring at Henry’s perfect fucking face. 

The next time Henry caught him staring, he didn’t look away. Henry didn’t either. Alex leaned in quickly, kissing Henry hard. He responded eagerly, his hands finding purchase in Alex’s hair. A moan escaped him at a particularly good yank of his hair. He shifted his attention to Henry’s neck, making sure to use his chance to mark him. 

Henry’s breath was hot and heavy in his ear. “What happened to ‘Let’s watch something?’” 

For whatever reason, Alex pulled back, staring Henry down again. “Do you want me?” he whispered. 

“What?” Henry asked, seemingly confused. 

It was enough to stop Alex in his tracks. Pushing away from Henry, he moved from the couch and walked over to the bed, removing himself from the situation. He threw his head in his hands, mentally scolding himself. He either should have just watched the show or pressed things further with Henry without interruption. But instead, he made things weird. He didn’t keep track of how much time passed before Henry walked closer to the bed. 

“Is everything all right?” Henry asked, hesitant. 

“It’s fine,” Alex lied. “I just...I don’t know. I guess I need a bit of time to myself.” 

A heavy silence hung between them as Alex waited for Henry to reply. “The offer I made at the beginning — to find a different room— would you prefer I did that?” 

Alex ignored the crushing feeling in his chest, turning on the bed to look at Henry. “Only if you want.” 

Henry looked more confused than anything else. “I just don’t really know what’s going on.” He took a hesitant step closer. “It almost feels like we had a fight, but I don’t know what it was about or why it happened.” 

Alex’s eyes slid shut and his head hung down. “It’s fine, Henry. Things are just a bit hard for me right now.” 

“How so?” Henry asked. “You know you can talk to me, right?” 

Their eyes met, Henry imploring Alex to clue him in on what was going on between them. Alex tried to summon all the courage he had before admitting what’s going on. 

“Everything changed when you kissed me,” he started. Henry shook his head like he was confused. He didn’t speak, though, and instead let Alex continue. “It all changed,” he adds, “and after that, you were pretty much all I could think about. You know — why had you kissed me? Why weren’t you answering my calls? Why were you going out with girls if you’d kissed me? What could I do to get you to kiss me again? What else could we do if we were on the same page?” He shook his head at himself. “You were always on my mind.

“And the sad part is that when you told me we were quarantined, there was a sick part of me that was excited. The idea of spending that much time with you seemed impossible and thrilling. How much more of you could I discover in that time? You know?” 

“Yeah,” Henry choked out. 

“But I guess it just sucks because I want to be locked in here with you, but you’d rather be locked in here with  _ him _ . And I know it’s all my fault. I pushed when I shouldn’t have, but I guess I just imagined that we were on the same page. But here I am, totally obsessed with you and you’d rather be with someone else.” 

Henry’s eyes were wide and confused. “Who?” 

“ _ Him _ !” Alex yelled, standing from the bed. “The guy from the story. The one you’re hung up on!” 

To his horror, Henry laughed. Alex was ready to punch him before he started talking. 

“Oh my god, Alex. Is this why you’ve been weird?” 

“I haven’t been weird!” 

“Fine, but you’ve been off at least. Why didn’t you just tell me?” 

Alex glared at him. “Tell you what? That I’m mad you’d rather be with someone else?” 

“I wish you had. Because then I could have told you that there isn’t anyone else,” Henry said. 

He started to fight in reply. “But —” 

“The story was about  _ you _ !” Henry yelled over him. 

That drew Alex back. “What?” Henry nodded. “That’s not...possible…” he said, faltering slightly. 

“I was the author. I think I know who I wrote it for,” he argued. 

Alex shook his head, genuinely confused by the new information being presented to him. “Wait, but the story said red hair and freckled skin. That’s not me.” 

Henry blew out a laugh. “Yeah, I changed it as I read it.” 

“Why?” 

“Well…” he trailed off. Taking a deep breath, he finished his thought. “We’d never really had a conversation making this anything more than physical. Anything more than —” 

“Please don’t say it.” 

“ — friends with blowjobs,” Henry finished. Alex groaned in reply, a hand coming over his face. “I didn’t think it was wise to show how embarrassingly you’ve filled my thoughts, because you hadn’t told me I was in yours. So I changed it as I read it to you.” He bit his lip, clearly wanting to say more. “I didn’t realize it would make you upset.” 

Alex stepped toward Henry. “It made me jealous as hell.” 

The corner of Henry’s mouth betrayed him, tugging up into a small smile for a split second before he could stop it. “Well, I promise that wasn’t my intention.” 

“Good.” Alex took a deep breath, preparing for the next confession. “I really like you, Henry. I think I have for a while. Well before you kissed me. I just didn’t know what it meant then. I wanted this to be something light and casual, but it’s really not. At least not for me.” 

“It’s not for me either,” Henry breathed. 

Leaning up, Alex closed the distance between them, his hands immediately finding his hair. Henry clutched him closer before walking them back and shoving Alex down on the bed. Their clothes were torn off quickly in fits of passion. He straddled Alex, pinning him down and kissing him thoroughly. Alex was so lost in kissing him that nothing else mattered. They were the calm in the eye of the storm. 

Henry’s hands wandered just where Alex wanted them as his mouth traveled south slowly. He felt sure he’d have a dark mark on his neck in the morning. It was the first time since his mom had been in office that he knew he wouldn’t have to hide it. He clung to Henry as his mind was blown and his body was worshipped. When Henry flopped down next to him, a smug grin on his face, Alex was boneless and unable to do much more than kiss him softly. 

Soon though, he was returning the favor eagerly, relishing each violent tug of his hair and the profanities spewing from Henry’s mouth. He arched off the mattress as he came, screaming Alex’s name. It was the best his name had ever sounded. He laid down next to Henry, same as he’d done before, and was greeted with a deep kiss. His mind was so swept up in happiness and bliss that he didn’t even take the time to mentally tease Henry for his narcissism. 

After a day and a half of uncertainty and discomfort, Alex laid next to Henry and everything felt fucking perfect. Their hands linked next to them before Henry rolled onto his side and met Alex for a long, languid kiss. 

Quarantine didn’t seem like such a bad thing. 

* * *

Henry was blissed out and boneless, laying there with Alex after they’d cleared the air. It all felt easy again. He hadn’t wanted to ask why Alex had started acting weird, though he’d wondered if it had something to do with the damn story. Thankfully, Alex didn’t seem upset that it was about him. Instead, he seemed delighted by it. That could work in Henry’s favor. 

They were mostly silent as they laid there together. It was a comfortable silence as they regained their breaths and curled together. 

Naturally, Alex was the one to break that. 

“When?” 

“Hmm?” 

“When did you write that story?” Henry’s silence tipped Alex off to his discomfort alarmingly quickly. “I mean, you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. I was just curious.” 

“Okay, then. I don’t want to answer.” He could never tell Alex that he wrote it years ago. Alex might have been the one to tell him that he cared for him, but Henry couldn’t acknowledge the full scope of his feelings. That would start another conversation he was not ready for. 

Things felt a bit awkward after Henry denied his answer. Thankfully, by the next morning, it seemed forgotten. Henry hadn’t forgotten, though. He just pretended the question had never come up. 

* * *

As the days carried on, things seemed almost  _ too _ good. Once they were back on the same page, it was pretty much perfect. Alex felt a little bit of guilt over the fact that his idea of perfect came while they were quarantined and others were in very much  _ not _ perfect situations. But while spending all his time with Henry, no other word felt right. 

They learned so much more about each other as they laid around and talked. Alex was learning the topics Henry was especially passionate about, and unsurprisingly, Henry was becoming one of the things  _ Alex _ was very passionate about. 

June kept checking in on him and Alex feigned boredom. Once, Henry was being particularly mischievous and started planting kisses against Alex’s neck as he tried to carry on a conversation with June. Alex thoroughly got his revenge once he’d hung up the phone. 

Nora was kind enough to text before she called Alex. She generally checked to see if they were busy first. But then again, she was one of the two that knew they were together. Nora kept Alex posted on life in the real world, not in quarantine. 

**Don’t worry about us here on this side of the ocean. Just enjoy your days with the boy you love.**

Alex rolled his eyes at the “L” word. 

But the thing was, it wasn’t the first time it had popped in his head. 

The longer he spent with Henry, the more often the word was there. He’d listen to Henry rant about anything from Bea’s cat to sanitizing queer history, and Alex was obsessed with it. He thought he’d listen to Henry talk about anything. There were more times that Alex conned Henry into reading more of his works and it made Alex’s heart soar to hear the beautiful things he’d crafted. 

Alex would make Henry laugh and he’d think, “I love making him laugh.” He’d flop down next to him, Henry panting heavily, and he’d think, “Man, I love the way my name sounds coming from him.” He’d reach over to steal a piece of food off his plate and think, “I love that he doesn’t care.” Or they’d be curled together on the bed or on the couch and he’d think, “I love how perfect this feels.” 

Needless to say, the word had been more present in his mind than Alex had expected. 

But it didn’t feel wrong. 

Instead, it felt  _ right _ . 

When Day 11 hit, neither of them had voiced how few days they have left together. It had been eating at Alex, but he refused to acknowledge it. He wanted to live in their quarantine bubble as long as he could. 

“I just think it’s irresponsible to project that image to the world,” Henry ranted. 

“What’s that again?” 

He looked over at Alex from his spot on the couch. “That Remus Lupin is straight. He’s bloody gay. I can go on and prove my point.” 

Alex was amused by how heated he was. “I know you could.” He laughed to himself, looking at his phone instead of Henry. “That’s why I love you.” 

Henry froze first. When they finally looked at each other, Henry stared at him like he’d lost his mind. 

“Excuse me?” he said. 

Alex was silent for a long beat. He’d been doing such a good job of keeping it in. “Um...yeah.” Henry still stared at him, almost daring him to take it back. Alex took a deep breath. “I didn’t mean to say it like that, but yeah. I meant it.” 

Without replying, Henry stood up and walked from the couch. Alex was frozen in place. Henry wasn’t really reacting the way he’d imagined. Not that he’d imagined telling Henry he loved him  _ all that often _ . 

“That’s impossible,” he said in a small voice, his back to Alex. 

“What? Why?” 

Henry turned around towards Alex. He looked miserable. It was the last reaction he’d expected. “Six months ago, you hated me.” 

Alex scoffed. “Six months ago, I didn’t know the real you.” He stood up off the couch and walked toward him. “But since the wedding, I’ve gotten to know you, gotten to realize that you’re totally different from the person that I thought you were. And the person that you actually are is the person I’ve fallen for. Each time you give a bit more of yourself, I fall a bit more.” He swallowed back the emotion threatening to come out. “I’m sorry if it’s too soon to say or whatever, but it’s the truth.” 

Henry shook his head. Alex couldn’t understand why he was reacting this way. “It’s not possible,” he whispered. 

Alex’s arms crossed, assuming a defensive position. He was getting angry. “Look, I don’t know why you refuse to believe that I know how I feel, but maybe it’s time I take you up on that offer you made at the beginning.” Henry’s face betrayed nothing. “Maybe you should go get another room.” 

Henry turned toward the door as Alex threw himself down on the couch. He was determined to wait until Henry had left to start crying. He couldn’t believe he was acting this way. It didn’t make sense to him. 

“Four years,” Henry said, still facing the door. 

“What?” 

“You asked me when I wrote the story,” he said, turning around. “I wrote it four years ago.” 

Alex felt confused more than anything. He stared at Henry, waiting for the “gotcha” or for him to turn and walk out the door before Alex could process the information. “I don’t...understand,” was how he replied. 

Henry stared at him, the miserable look back on his face. “When we met, the reason I was a prick was because I didn’t think I could stand to be around someone as bright and happy as you were. But  _ God _ , I wanted to. You were this beautiful, unreachable creature to me. And fuck, if I didn’t love you. But you hated me. And in a way that was easier because it’s not like I ever could have had you.

“But then after the wedding, we started to talk more. Gradually at first, but it just got worse. You were unabashedly yourself to me and I was so helplessly in love with you. You would send me appalling texts and I loved you. And you’d call me in the middle of the bloody night and I loved you. You invited me to your party and got drunk with me and made me jealous as hell and I loved you so much I couldn’t take it anymore.” 

“And you kissed me.” 

Henry took a breath. “And I kissed you.” He crossed his arms, closing in on himself a bit. “But I never thought it would mean anything. All of this between us, I never thought it would mean anything. At least...not to you. I figured I’d just take what little of you that you would give me and that would have to be enough.” 

“I don’t know that I imagined I’d feel this way this fast either,” Alex said. His voice was small. “But the fact is that I do feel this way. And maybe if we hadn’t spent this much time together, it would have taken me longer to realize it. But we did have all this time together.” 

“How do you know it’s not just Stockholm Syndrome?” 

Alex glared at him. “You’re not my fucking captor. You offered to leave and I didn’t want you to.” 

“But you do now.” 

“No, I don’t, you asshole! I just don’t want to be told that what I feel isn’t real!” Alex yelled in reply. He stood up from the couch and stared at Henry. “I know how I feel, whether you believe me or not.” In a much softer voice, he continued, “I love you.” 

Slowly, Alex crossed the room, reaching up to cup Henry’s face. “Look, I know everything is uncertain right now. Once we leave here, who knows the next time we’ll get to be together? And there’s also the fact that neither of us are out.” Henry’s head ducked, but Alex tried to keep eye contact. “But none of that changes how I feel.” Henry’s eyes met his, holding this time. “I love you, Henry.” 

His arms unfolded, wrapping around Alex, bringing them closer together. When he was a breath away, he whispered back, “I love you, too.” Henry was the one to close the distance between them. They met in a slow, almost tentative kiss. Alex let Henry set the pace, still a bit worried by his reaction. When Henry deepened the kiss and his hands tangled in Alex’s hair, he took it as his sign to respond accordingly. He grabbed onto Henry’s shirt and held it in his fists, keeping the man he loves close to him. 

Henry began walking them backward, only pausing when Alex’s knees hit the bed. Alex turned them, shoving Henry down on the bed instead. Henry’s shirt was off before he bent down to kiss him again. Henry clung to him, panting as Alex latched to his throat. One hand was large on his back, the other was in his hair. It drew Alex up short when he finally processed what Henry was saying as he panted. “I love you, I love you, I love you.” Alex kissed him again, almost roughly, bearing down on him. 

He broke away from him, staying just a breath away as he stared down at Henry. “I love you too.” A blissful, unbelieving smile crossed Henry’s face. Soon, he rolled them over, spreading himself out over Alex. 

He held himself off him for a bit longer than Alex expected, simply staring down at him. His forehead rested against Alex’s. “I’m sorry,” he breathed. 

Alex’s hands moved up his sides and around his back. “Don’t be.” He leaned up and kissed Henry softly. In a whisper, he said, “Show me how you love me.” 

Henry grinned, meeting Alex for a quick kiss. “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways,” he recited before kissing Alex again. 

“Are you spouting poetry right now?” Henry gave him a sheepish grin. “Fuck, why is that hot?” 

As he started to pay close attention to Alex’s neck and worked his way south, Henry replied, “Well, if reciting poetry is hot, we may just be in luck.” He hid a grin against Alex’s stomach. Alex couldn’t help but groan, feeling his hands and mouth everywhere he wanted. He was incredibly thankful Henry hadn’t actually left when Alex told him to. This moment was far too perfect.

* * *

They were laying wrapped around each other still, Henry still marvelling at all the revelations of the day. There was a part of him that still doubted that Alex could really love him. He tried his best to shut that part out and forget it. Running his hand across Alex’s stomach, he adjusted his grip on him. His head rested on Alex’s shoulder. 

“I feel as though when most people are quarantined, they likely want to leave at the end of it, don’t they?” 

Alex huffed out a breath. “Yeah, probably.” There was a beat of silence between them. “I don’t.” 

“Me either.” 

Alex looked down at him, resting his head against Henry’s. “We’ll just have to get really good at video chatting, yeah? Neither of us have any semblance of a normal sleep schedule. I think we can do it.” 

Henry couldn’t help but chuckle. “I think so too.” 

The next three days were spent showing just how much they truly loved the other. If private moments had been taken the first ten days of quarantine, there were very few for the last three. They knew the end of their time together was quickly approaching and both of them hated it. 

Neither of them slept much the night before they were going to part. 

Alex played with Henry’s hand as a heavy silence hung between them. “It won’t be forever,” Henry assured him. 

“It’ll feel like it,” Alex argued. 

Henry leaned over and kissed the side of Alex’s head. “Yes, it likely will.” Alex turned and looked at him, moving in for a long, languid kiss. It happened many times throughout the night — expressing their fears of the world outside their hotel and what it meant for them. 

The sun rose just as it had the last fourteen days. It found them the same as it had each morning as well — curled together, arms around the other. 

Henry was leaving first and both of them hated it. Alex pinned him to the wall, kissing him roughly. He responded eagerly. When they broke apart, Alex wrapped his arms tightly around Henry. “We can do this,” Henry whispered in his ear. He felt Alex nod against him. 

There was a knock at the door, signalling Henry’s time to leave. Alex nodded, a miserable look on his face. He surged up quickly, grabbing Henry’s face and kissing him hard. “I love you,” he whispered. 

Henry kissed him back again. “I love you, too.” 

With one final look at the other, their time together was over and Henry was walking from the hotel with his PPOs. A notable exception was his heart, which was back with Alex in his room. 

* * *

**Two months later**

Alex was bouncing anxiously. The travel restrictions across the world were finally lifted. Henry was due for D.C. and Alex felt like he was floating on a cloud. In the months since Paris, June and Bea had both been clued in on the situation. June figured it out on her own. Bea found out in a less than ideal way. 

But it didn’t matter. He was going to be reunited with Henry in a matter of hours. In his excitement, he was practically vibrating out of his body. Henry had given him one task: to figure out a plausible reason for Henry to be going to the U.S. Neither of them thought “I haven’t touched the First Son in months” would really go over well with either of their families. Unfortunately, Alex was coming up blank. He was fairly certain his excitement was to blame. He could think of nothing but how ready he was to have Henry in his arms again. 

Video chats and long phone calls had gotten them through the long drought, but enough was enough. The world was starting to live again, and they were desperate to see each other. 

Two notifications popped up on his phone, one right after the other. The first one was a text from Henry: 

**I think I came up with a plausible enough excuse.**

The second was a notification from Instagram. A post had been sent to him. 

It was a picture out the window of a plane. The caption read:  _ When you’re free to travel again, check on your extroverted friends. They’re likely not okay. First stop, D.C. _

Alex burst out laughing. Henry was right on it, and somehow, he thought the world might just buy it. Switching back to his message from Henry, he fired off a reply. 

**You’re right. I’m not okay. Get your ass here NOW.**

**We’re almost there. Patience.**

**You know damn well I don’t have any of that.**

**I miss you.**

**I miss you too.**

**Give me an hour.**

**One hour. That’s my limit. You better be in my arms at the end of that.**

**I shall do my best.**

In the end, it was actually closer to  _ two _ hours. After two months, it really wasn’t that bad. They rushed back to Henry’s hotel and actively set to tearing each other apart. There was plenty to discuss, but Henry was in his arms and nothing else mattered.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think! I have a few other rwrb stories brewing in my mind and I hope to write some of those as well. 
> 
> If you want, I'm on tumblr as three-drink-amy!


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